Sunday, January 17, 2010

Week 17 TV Ratings and Analysis; How the Sitcoms Did

Week 17 TV Ratings (first four nights, Mon-Thurs finals):
(We don't have final network averages for Wednesday and Thursday, so we won't give you the network averages for the first four night, but please find the final program final ratings in the analysis below.)

Households: N/A
Total Viewers: N/A
Adults 18-49: N/A

Week 17 (Jan. 11-17) Analysis: For week 17, American Idol returned for Fox so here we go again. So far through the first four days of the week I can project (since network averages are not available above), Fox is obviously in the lead in HH/viewers and 18-49. CBS follows in a solid second in those categories, with ABC in third in every category, and NBC fourth in every category as usual. Last week, week 16, NBC battled thanks to NFL playoff coverage in HH/viewers as it tied CBS in HH, and won in viewers, while Fox prevailed in 18-49 over NBC. Fox was third in HH, but second in viewers, as CBS was third in viewers. ABC was fourth in HH/viewers, but very close behind. ABC was third in 18-49, with CBS way back in fourth. It was a very close week thanks to football.
On Monday it was CBS in the lead new episodes of their regulars. CBS started with new episodes of its comedies and ended with a new CSI: Miami. How I Met Your Mother started it off with 9.77 million, great but it was its 100th episode so it could have been a bit higher, while a new Accidentally on Purpose followed doing 8.44 million. Two and a Half Men followed with a new showing doing 17.27 million, that is very strong, and The Big Bang Theory followed with a new episode of its own doing a series high of 15.82 million. It also did a series best 5.7 18-49 rating, building on the lead-in's 5.4. A new CSI: Miami did 13.7 million, not bad but seems lower than usual. ABC got good mileage again out of The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love doing a solid 10.5 million, up a million from previous week, and a 3.6 18-49 rating for the two-hours. A new episode of Castle returned with guest star Alyssa Milano and did a solid 9.47 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating. Fox was on the map with House but it did a below normal 12.25 million and a 4.6 18-49 rating. A new episode of Fringe on a special night did 7.72 million, not bad. NBC started off with a new Chuck at a decent 7.35 million and 2.6 18-49 rating, but Heroes plummeted doing only 4.72 million and a 2.1 A18-49 rating., both series lows. Cancel this already. The Jay Leno Show followed with only 4.8 million, but it built a bit from the lead-in in total viewers at least. The CW aired repeats of One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl doing 1.16 million and 730,000 viewers, terrible.
On Tuesday, Fox and CBS had a lot to talk about. Fox of course started a new season of American Idol with 29.94 million, off a bit from last season's premiere in viewers but up 1% in 18-49 to a 11.8 rating. By far and away the highest rated series of course. CBS started with a new NCIS doing 20.85million, off a bit from previous week as it was a milestone episode. Then spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles was next with a new showing of its own doing 15.6 million, down nearly three million from previous week as it didn't handle Idol as well as its parent--but still good. And finally CBS aired a new The Good Wife doing a solid 13.87 million, basically on par from previous week. NBC was next with a two-hour The Biggest Loser doing 8.11 million, down over 3 1/2 million from previous week, the 18-49 rating went from 4.6 to a 3.2. It is NBC's saving grace still though. Then The Jay Leno Show tanked as usual to 6.1 million, but down only a bit from previous week. ABC started off with a repeat of Scrubs [Med School] doing only 2.45 million only, followed by a new showing of Better off Ted doing only 2.17 million, down from previous week as its lead-in was a repeat this week. All-new episodes of each followed doing only 2.72 and 2.5 million, ouch. At 10pm, the forgotten was new and did only 4.32 million and just a 1.2 18-49 rating, but at least it was on par from previous week. The CW aired repeats of 90210 and Melrose Place doing only 700,000 and 660,000 viewers...worse than Monday repeats even overall and down from previous week's repeats.
Wednesday it was Fox on top again. Fox aired a 90-minute American Idol doing 26.39 million and a 10.1 18-49 rating, down a lot from previous night, but still far and away the highest rated series. A repeat of the 450th episode of The Simpsons followed with 8.06 million, not bad but lost a lot of the lead-in. CBS started with new episodes of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried at below level numbers thanks to Idol, doing 5.97 and 5.59 million. Next CBS aired a new Criminal Minds doing a solid 13.9 million, with big gains in the second half-hour as Idol ended. A new CSI: NY followed with a solid 14.03 million. ABC comedies were next with a repeat of Modern Family at 8pm doing a decent 5.12 million, followed by a new episode of The Middle doing 5.95 million and a 2.1 18-49 ratings, beating the competing CBS comedy in both measures both down two million from previous week thanks to Idol. Modern Family was also new and did 7.83 million, down over two million from previous week as it went head-to-head vs. Idol. It's 3.3 18-49 rating was still solid, but down from previous week's 4.1. It won't face Idol this week. Cougar Town was also new and did a solid 7.27 million and a solid 3.1 18-49 rating, both down a bit from previous week. Ugly Betty was next at 10pm and did an OK 4.4 million...down some from previous week. Needs to do better. NBC was next with a new episode of Mercy doing 5.85 million, down over a million from previous week, followed by a repeat of Law & Order: SVU doing 7.65 million. At 10pm NBC aired The Jay Leno Show of course at 5.31 million, which was actually up a bit from previous week. The CW aired more repeats as more One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl did only 817,000 and 535,000 viewers. Ouch, but both up a tad from previous week though.
Thursday it was a CBS and ABC battle. CBS opened with a repeat of The Mentalist at a solid 9.4 million, a new CSI followed with a solid 15.33 million. At 10pm The Mentalist was also new and did 15.38 million, but both dramas played second fiddle to ABC in 18-49. ABC started off with an ABC News Special on Haiti: Race to Save a Country that did 5.36 million, followed by the Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice crossover that did 12.78 and 10.96 million, not bad but could have been better. 18-49 for both was 4.8 and 4.2 rating. Fox had a new Bones doing a quiet 10.75 million and a new Fringe did 6.6 million, better than usual here. NBC had new episodes of its comedies with Community, doing the best of the bunch oddly at 5.42 million, Parks & Recreation, was next and did only 4.63 million, The Office was preempted for two new episodes of 30 Rock and that did not work as two episodes did only 5.12 and 4.98 million, ouch. The Jay Leno Show closed the night with only 4.41 million, its worst Thursday episode ever for the second week in a row. The CW aired more repeats as Vampire Diaries did 1.65 million and Supernatural did 1.33 million...their best night by far of the week, but both were off a bit from previous week.
Now, final numbers for Friday and Saturday are not available as usual, but CBS won Friday with their dramas. ABC saw good gains from Supernanny and Shark Tank, while NBC did decent with Dateline at 9pm.
Saturday numbers saw CBS dominate with coverage of the NFL Divisional Playoff game. Fox was a distant second with its regular shows but with solid Saturday numbers, as NBC and ABC were well back.
Tonight ABC has its guns of AFV, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters, that should do well. NBC has the Golden Globes that should help them nearly win the night. CBS has a new 60 Minutes at a special time of 8pm and Cold Case at 9 following an NFL playoff overrun that will have them win the night. Fox has the premiere of Human Target which might get lost in the shuffle tonight, and the two-hour season premiere of 24 from 9-11pm. All the networks tonight will have something good to tout I think. I think CBS could prevail in HH/viewers over Fox thanks to NFL. But Fox should hang on in 18-49. CBS will likely be second in 18-49, with ABC and NBC in third and fourth across the board. As for this coming week, look for the series premiere of Life UneXpected on The CW at 9pm tomorrow.

Week 17 How the Sitcoms Did

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week 16 -- Jan. 4-10)

  • The Simpsons (Fox) - The 450th episode airing after a high rated NFL playoff game did 14.62 million and a strong 6.9 in 18-49. Big lead in certainly helps things. A weird 20th anniversary special of the series followed from 8:44-9:44 and did a solid 11.43 million and a 5.5 18-49 rating.
  • The Cleveland Show (Fox) - 8.14 million and a 3.8 18-49 rating, at a special time of 9:44pm-10:13pm. Obviously up some from previous week with a big lead-in.
  • Family Guy (Fox) - preempted.
  • American Dad (Fox) - preempted.

Monday Sitcoms

  • How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - 100th episode did a solid 9.77 million and a 3.9 18-49 rating, season highs I think...but I was expecting more.
  • Accidentally on Purpose (CBS) - 8.44 million for a new episode, decent, but could be better. Will be moving to Wednesdays at 8:30 late next month.
  • Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 17.27 million overall, what more can you say? 5.4 18-49 rating is also great.
  • The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - Series highs again! 15.82 million and a 5.7 18-49 rating. Yes, the lead-in helps this show, but it still builds in 18-49.

Tuesday Sitcoms

  • [scrubs] (ABC) 2 episodes - Two airings of the [Med School] edition did only 2.45 million for a repeat at 8pm and a new episode at 9pm only did 2.72 million. Idol bait.
  • Better off Ted (ABC) 2 episodes - Only 2.17 million and 2.5 million for two all-new episodes. Both down obviously from previous week as it went face-to-face with Idol.

Wednesday Sitcoms
  • Old Christine (CBS) - A below normal 5.97 million for a new showing.
  • Gary Unmarried (CBS) - 5.59 million for a new episode, but built from the lead-in's 1.8 18-49 rating to a 1.9 rating.
  • The Middle (ABC) - A new episode at 8:30pm following a repeat of Modern Family did 5.95 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, both beating Gary on CBS.
  • Modern Family (ABC) 2 airings - A repeat at 8pm did 5.12 million. Not bad. A new episode at 9pm did 7.83 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, both down from previous week as it faced Idol.
  • Cougar Town (ABC) - A new episode did a solid 7.27 million, good showing. 3.1 18-49 rating is decent, too.
  • The Simpsons (Fox) - A special repeat of the 450th episode did 8.06 million and a 3.6 18-49 rating, but it had Idol as its lead-in...

Thursday Sitcoms

  • Community (NBC) - A new episode did 5.42 million, actually the best of the night for NBC. Sad right?
  • Parks & Recreation (NBC) - Only 4.63 million. A disappointment .
  • The Office (NBC) - preempted.
  • 30 Rock (NBC) 2 episodes - Two new episodes aired and without The Office as a lead-in, the show did bad. 5.12 million and 4.98 million...and what about 18-49? Both did only a 2.3 rating.

Friday Sitcoms

  • None.

Saturday Sitcoms

  • None.

Airing tonight (Sunday) are no sitcoms.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family, Cougar Town & Accidentally on Purpose were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (such as Community, The Middle) or just plain old terrible (such as Better off Ted, Scrubs).


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, May 11

The Simpsons - "Full Heart, Empty Pool" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Homer and Grampa team up to create a new sport that rivals pickleball, until Homer kicks Grampa off.

Family Guy - "One Foot in Front of the Mother" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Due to a police complaint about his excessive barking, Brian has to wear a shock collar; looking to join an after-school team, Chris discovers a talent for speed walking.

Krapopolis - "Don Tyxote" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Ty gets a fancy new suit and with it, the confidence to invade Persia; Hippo is left home to defend the throne; Deliria and Shlub role-play.

The Great North - "Sunset Beeflevard Adventure" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Judy joins the cast of a dinner theater production; Wolf and Honeybee help Moon sell jerky door-to-door.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of May 5)

Friday, May 9

  • Paul Rudd (The Shrink Next Door/Living with Yourself/Wild Oats) - Watch Paul on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Matt Bomer (Mid-Century Modern) - Matt appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Asif Ali (Deli Boys) and Saagar Shaikh (Deli Boys) - Asif and Saagar are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Busy Philipps (Girls5eva/Vice Principals/Cougar Town/Love, Inc.) - Busy chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
  • Christine Baranski (The Big Bang Theory/Happy Family/Welcome to New York/Cybill) - Christine talks about Nine Perfect Strangers on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
  • Holly Robinson Peete (Hangin' with Mr. Cooper/For Your Love/Like Family/Love, Inc.) - Holly swings by for a chat about her new film Hats Off to Love on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
  • Sarah Michelle Gellar (The Crazy Ones) and Alyson Hannigan (How I Met Your Mother/Free Spirit) - NBC's Today catches up with Sarah and Alyson in the 9am hour.
  • Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan) - In this a little bit extra episode Drew shares more of her conversation with Brooke at the news desk on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Rebel Wilson (Super Fun Night) - Rebel joins Sherri to talk about starring in the new film Juliet & Romeo, so check your local listings.
  • Terri J. Vaughn (She the People/Mann & Wife/Meet the Browns/All of Us/The Steve Harvey Show) - Terri talks about starring in the new Netflix series She the People on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Julia Sweeney (Shrill/Work in Progress/Maybe It's Me/George and Leo) and Marsha Mason (Grace and Frankie/The Middle/Sibs) - Julia and Marsha talk about My First Ex-Husband on PIX11 Morinng News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series Frasier (2023) - Season Two Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered) Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)

01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/08 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)

More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

05/10 - SitcomsOnline Digest: NBC Cancels Night Court and Lopez vs. Lopez; ABC Renews Duo of Game Shows
05/09 - Peacock Orders Dig from Amy Poehler; Apple TV+ Comedy Stick Premieres June 4; Remembering Ruth Buzzi
05/08 - CBS 2025-26 Schedule; Animal Control and Going Dutch Renewed by Fox
05/07 - Netflix's A Man on the Inside Bulks Up Cast for Season 2; The Studio Renewed by Apple TV+
05/06 - Netflix's Long Story Short Announces Cast; NBC Renews All Chicago Series for 2025-26
05/05 - Antenna TV's The Partridge Family Mother's Day Marathon; Rewind TV's 227 40th Anniversary Marathon
05/04 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 5, 2025)
05/03 - SitcomsOnline Digest: CBS Cancels The Equalizer; Wisteria Lane Offshoot of Desperate Housewives in the Works
05/02 - USA and SYFY Announce Summer Premieres; CBC in Canada Renews 5 Series, Including Wild Cards
05/01 - ABC Summer 2025 Schedule; Audible Scripted Comedy Podcasts for Summer
04/30 - The Carol Burnett Show Mother of All Marathons; Netflix Renews North of North
04/29 - Lifetime Adds New Ripped from the Headlines Movie; BET+ Orders Season 2 of Series
04/28 - Fox Summer 2025 Schedule; Final Guest Hosts for Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Season
04/27 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of April 28, 2025)
04/26 - SitcomsOnline Digest: CBS Cancels Poppa's House; Final Season 50 Hosts for Saturday Night Live Set
04/25 - Classic TV's Biggest Auction; Remembering Will Hutchins and Wink Martindale
04/24 - Jerrod Carmichael's 4th HBO Comedy Special; HBO's Pee-wee as Himself Premieres May 23
04/23 - Apple TV+ Announces Comedy Series Prodigies; ABC Renews Unscripted Series Slate
04/22 - Hallmark Channel's May For Moms Month; Prime Video Gets Korean Comedy Action Series
04/21 - Peacock's Twisted Metal Returns July 31; Poker Face Lines Up Big Guests for Season 2
04/20 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of April 21, 2025)
04/19 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Clueless Reboot in the Works at Peacock; King of the Hill Cast Reunion and Revival Preview at ATX TV Festival Next Month
04/18 - 2025 TIME100 on ABC; Atsuko Okatsuka: Father Premieres June 13 on Hulu
04/17 - BET+ Orders Martin Spinoff Varnell Hill; It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Returns in July
04/16 - And Just Like That... Season 3 on Max This May; MGM+ Comedy Series Adds Big Stars
04/15 - HBO's Harry Potter Series; Classic TV Comes to Life in NYC
04/14 - TV Stars Lineup for Summer of 69 Hulu Film; Jessica Kirson Comedy Special
04/13 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of April 14, 2025)
04/12 - SitcomsOnline Digest: FX Sets Premiere Date for Adults; Netflix Picks Up Monopoly Themed Reality Competition Series
04/11 - Bounce TV Renews Mind Your Business; AMC Networks 2025 Upfront Highlights
04/10 - David Spade's Prime Video Comedy Special; Brett Goldstein's HBO Comedy Special Filmed in New Jersey